Policies & Priorities

Policy Overview

The Division E of the Information Technology Management Reform Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–106, Clinger Cohen Act) requires federal executive departments and agencies to use a disciplined capital planning and investment control (CPIC) process to acquire, use, maintain, and dispose of information technology in alignment with the Agency’s enterprise architecture planning processes. OMB Circular A-130 further requires federal executive departments and agencies to establish and maintain a capital planning and investment control process that links mission needs, information, and information technology in an effective and efficient manner.

The CPIC process includes all stages of capital programming, including planning, budgeting, procurement, management, and assessment. Each year, as OMB produces the President’s Budget, a team of analysts at OMB OFCIO reviews an agencies’ overall list of all IT investments and their detailed IT business cases. This requirement is communicated to agencies through the annual updates to OMB Circular A-11. section 55.

Why This Matters to the CIO Council

Agency IT budget estimates should reflect IT investments that directly support each agency’s mission. This should align with each agency identifies in their Information Resources Management (IRM) Strategic Plan, specified in OMB Circular A-130, which should fully describe all IT resources at the agency, be prepared in a manner consistent with the CIO role and CIO review described on page 11 of OMB memorandum M-15-14 Management and Oversight of Federal IT, including CFO/CIO certification statements described in OMB circular A-11 section 51.3, and be consistent with the Public Law 113–291 Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA).